[shan_ned]

As far as the brakes are concerned, three things come to my mind.
1. Actual braking/stopping power
2. Brake feel
3. ABS

When it comes to braking power, N650 is as good as any of the motorcycles in that category. In fact, few comparison test reports indicate that N650 has better braking power than few other ones.

The other part is the brake feel. Yes, you will feel the brakes lack the bite even though they have good stopping power. Few changes (moving to steel braided lines, aftermarket brake pads and good tires) makes a significant difference to the brake feel.

The last is the ABS and that is where Kawasaki India is not doing anything. Neither the 300 or the 650 comes with ABS. It is a big disappointment.

[IronH4WK]

Update at 24333kms.

Unfortunately, something happened to Toothless, which I've been always been dreading would happen - rim bend. It happened while I was on my way to my in-law's place for dinner. There was a auto rickshaw ahead of me and I was caught unawares when it suddenly swerved to avoid something. Hit a deep pothole, which is what the auto was trying to avoid. Almost control of the bike; regained balance after a bit of wobbling and brought her to a stop. My arms and shoulders started aching because of the sudden jolt. After checking that nothing's broken and the bike is in ridable condition, I gather myself and head to my in-laws for dinner.

At first I didn't realise the rim might be bent; found it out when I went down the next day to inspect the bike. Had felt a wobble while riding back home. The air pressure was dropping; slightly, but dropping.



I call Auto Service and they tell me to bring the bike over. I didn't want to risk further damage, so called for a tow service to get her there.



Once there, Babu (Service Manager) asks how do I wanted to deal with this; I tell him I'm claiming insurance. He brings me the forms and explains the process to me. I call up ICICI Lombard and report the incident and get a claim number assigned. It was a pleasant conversation with the executive on the phone he even enquired if I was okay and if I had hurt myself. I think to myself "hmm.. that wasn't so bad". It is October 25th.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

Next day I get a SMS that a surveyor (Chandra Deshpande) has been assigned to my case and he will assist with my claim. Even after couple of days when I didn't hear from the surveyor or service centre, I call up Auto Service to find out the status. They tell me that the surveyor hasn't shown up yet. I call the surveyor and promises to get to it soon. Finally, on October 29th, Chandra goes to Auto Service. Later that day I get a SMS stating initial survey has been completed.

I don't hear from him for a week, so I call him. I got a shock when I was told that the claim can't be approved because it's an "internal damage". I was baffled; I ask him how is this a "internal damage" - this is a bent wheel, which usually is on the outside? He starts giving excuses - he goes from "internal damage" to "the suspension should have handled it" to "there is no accident, no damage to you or the bike, so it can't be approved". Then he tells me the case is now with his boss and that he'll see what he can do.

A week goes by and no news from Chandra. I call him only to find he's either not picking my call or his phone being switched off. I call up Auto Service and they tell me the same thing. Meanwhile, I check with Venkat (owner of Auto Service) about the status of the new wheel. He told me he's not sure as there's been a shipment sent, but not sure if the wheel is part of it.

Finally, on November 12th, the wheel arrives at Auto Service. I'm still hopeful, so I call Chandra the next day and ask him about the status of the claim. He casually mentions that he's rejected it since it's an "internal damage" and is not covered under insurance. I was shocked! I ask him why and try to drill some sense into him, but he's not ready to listen - just keep rambling about how the damage is not covered by insurance. When I tell him that I know of three of my friends (and BHPians) who have had similar issues and the insurance company has approved their claims, he tells me that no insurance company will ever approve such a claim. He goes further and challenges me that if I give him the policy number and claim number of such a incident that was approved by a insurance company, he would immediately approve my claim.

According to Chandra, the reason for rejection of my claim was:

• it's an "internal damage".
• the tyre hasn't burst.
• the wheel hasn't cracked.
• there was no accident, I was not injured (or anybody else) and there are no other damages to the bike.
• suspension should have handled it better.
• the bike should have been designed to better to handle potholes.

I know, I was and at the same time!

Frustrated and not willing to engage in further idiotic discussion, I ask him for the last time if he was going to approve my claim. He replied that he wasn't and that I should be getting a letter from their Mumbai office detailing the reasons for rejection of my claim. I tell him it's not over, that this matter will be escalated. It's not the matter of money, but principle.

When buying insurance, nobody tells you this and that is not covered; they just tell you "everything is covered sir, don't worry sir, there won't be any problem sir". When you raise a claim is when you get to see their true colours. I did a bit of digging around and found that ICICI Lombard (the company that has insured my bike) has very bad reputation for rejecting claims for the stupidest reasons. Wish I had done my ground work when buying the bike, but then at that time I was like "whatever, just gimme my bike"! LOL!

By the way, I've a bumper-to-bumper zero depreciation cover for my bike.

So, now that Toothless was in the docks for more than two weeks, I decided to put her suffering to an end. I call Venkat and tell him that I'll pay for the wheel and get it changed and later wait for insurance to pay for it. I head to Auto Service and Suresh (the trusted Kawasaki mechanic who works on my bike) is ready with the wheel. Once he's done with another bike that he was working on, Toothless has his undivided attention. Just after noon Toothless is ready to rock n roll!



The old bent wheel:


It's difficult to remove these nuts as they're tightened with Locktite applied.


Once you remove the disc, this is how the wheel looks:


New wheel, balanced and appropriate weights added:


So, with Toothless all fixed up, I pay the bill for her little operation and take her home. Now, I await the letter Chandra said I would receive from their Mumbai office in a weeks time. Once I have the letter I'll decide what course of action needs to be taken - should I approach the Insurance Ombudsman or file a case in the Consumer Court? Either way, I'm not going to just lie down and let ICICI walk all over me. I'm going to take this fight to them.

[narula123]

Originally Posted by IronH4WK

So, with Toothless all fixed up, I pay the bill for her little operation and take her home. Now, I await the letter Chandra said I would receive from their Mumbai office in a weeks time. Once I have the letter I'll decide what course of action needs to be taken - should I approach the Insurance Ombudsman or file a case in the Consumer Court? Either way, I'm not going to just lie down and let ICICI walk all over me. I'm going to take this fight to them.

As a fellow 650 owner, I know that wheel is not cheap. Whats the point of insurance when these chaps dont help you in need. My suggestion - take this up with the Insurance Ombudsman. Mark a mail to every senior ICICI Lombard chap under the sun while at it. Consumer court is your next option if the ombudsman doesnt help. Dont take this lying down. Let me know if you need help.

[v12]

Sorry to hear about the mishap Hawk and moreso on what they are making you go through. As Narula suggested, take it to the highest level. Why should a bent rim not be covered under insurance when a broken / cracked one can be covered? Both are equally useless in their functioning. I am not sure if this would be a good idea - hammering the wheels to a slight crack and then claiming it under insurance - this is what most agents suggest as the best way to have the claim approved.

Replacing the wheel is definitely not a cheap option - 50-60k easily I guess. Why should the owner bear the cost when there is insurance available? Suggest you to move to a different insurer too - since I have also not heard some great reviews on ICICI.

[IronH4WK]

Originally Posted by narula123

As a fellow 650 owner, I know that wheel is not cheap.

Originally Posted by v12

Replacing the wheel is definitely not a cheap option - 50-60k easily I guess.

Replacing the front wheel cost me 32k+. The Z800's wheels are more costlier; upwards of 40k.

While buying the bike I've paid almost 88k on so called Road Tax. Where are the freaking roads that were promised to me? All I got is craters and swimming pools! When mishaps happen, there sure are insurance companies to make you run around from pilar to post.

Insurance Companies - screwing the common man since time immemorial

Originally Posted by v12

Suggest you to move to a different insurer too - since I have also not heard some great reviews on ICICI.

Oh absolutely! I've no intention of continuing with these sharks.

[aditya.bhardwaj]

That's a bad experience man. I had the same experience with the ktm guys here in delhi with the exact same details i.e front wheel bent. But after putting some pressure and shooting some mails to IRDA, they approved my claim without any issues. I suggest you do the same.

[loki]

Originally Posted by IronH4WK

When I tell him that I know of three of my friends (and BHPians) who have had similar issues and the insurance company has approved their claims, he tells me that no insurance company will ever approve such a claim. He goes further and challenges me that if I give him the policy number and claim number of such a incident that was approved by a insurance company, he would immediately approve my claim.

One of the CBR650F owners in Bangalore had a bent front rim and ICICI Lombard processed his claim! (Front rim on the CBR650F costs around Rs 11K). Either this guy is lieing or is incompetent. I don't think theres a single positive review about ICICI Lombard.

[Nithesh_M]

Originally Posted by IronH4WK

Replacing the front wheel cost me 32k+. The Z800's wheels are more costlier; upwards of 40k.

Originally Posted by loki

One of the CBR650F owners in Bangalore had a bent front rim and ICICI Lombard processed his claim! (Front rim on the CBR650F costs around Rs 11K).

Interesting. Why is the more expensive machine's wheel costing 1/3rd the price of the cheapest one and nearly 1/4th the price of the bike that nearly costs the same?

Is Kawasaki pricing the spares exorbitantly high to offset the low initial price of the machines they sell?

[IronH4WK]

Originally Posted by Nithesh_M

Is Kawasaki pricing the spares exorbitantly high to offset the low initial price of the machines they sell?

Not sure mate, but one thing I've learnt after buy the Ninja - everything Kawasaki is expensive

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Nithesh_M

Interesting. Why is the more expensive machine's wheel costing 1/3rd the price of the cheapest one and nearly 1/4th the price of the bike that nearly costs the same?

Not a straight forward comparison since the 650s are both CKD units, while the Z800 is a direct import.

But yes, comparing the 650s - Honda seems to have a good advantage when it comes to service and spares. It has three free services as well, which means half the service costs of the Kawasaki till 18,000 kms.

[narula123]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

But yes, comparing the 650s - Honda seems to have a good advantage when it comes to service and spares. It has three free services as well, which means half the service costs of the Kawasaki till 18,000 kms.

Are the front wheels on both the CBR and 650 the same size (should be IMO)? If they are and one is not claiming insurance then it makes sense to buy the cheaper one of the two.

Most CBR parts seem to be cheaper than the N650. better localization or just a case of Kawa making more margins off it.

[v12]

Even if the size is the same - would the CBR wheel be a direct fit on the Ninja? What about the fitting of the disc brake etc?

[narula123]

Originally Posted by v12

Even if the size is the same - would the CBR wheel be a direct fit on the Ninja? What about the fitting of the disc brake etc?

Needs to be checked. I am assuming both run the same front braking hardware including the Tokico calipers. If its a direct match then shame on Kawa for fleecing us with higher prices.

[Shreeniwas]

Originally Posted by narula123

Needs to be checked. I am assuming both run the same front braking hardware including the Tokico calipers. If its a direct match then shame on Kawa for fleecing us with higher prices.

I feel it is the Kawasaki fleecing ! Last week my Z800's battery gave up. I ended up @ ASC to know Kawasaki has increased the price of battery by almost 6k. Used to be Rs.8350/-

I just returned home and ordered after market battery.

Price of battery @ Kawasaki ASC was 14+ k , 1 year warranty
After market , 8.5k with 3 years warranty.

[farhadtarapore]

Originally Posted by Shreeniwas

I feel it is the Kawasaki fleecing ! Last week my Z800's battery gave up. I ended up @ ASC to know Kawasaki has increased the price of battery by almost 6k. Used to be Rs.8350/-

I just returned home and ordered after market battery.

Price of battery @ Kawasaki ASC was 14+ k , 1 year warranty
After market , 8.5k with 3 years warranty.

Just curious: after how many years or kms did the battery give way?